The Story

So, it Def Was a Chemical Attack?

Well, not
officially
officially. Syria’s President Assad denies the accusations that his forces attacked civilians. But almost everyone else is very sure. The U.N. chemical weapons inspectors looking into it haven’t released formal findings yet.

What's Going to Happen?

Most likely a
military strike
. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said “we are ready to go.” The Western forces made it clear any strike would be specific to punish Assad for the chemical weapons attack, and they are not trying to get in the middle of a violent power struggle between him and the rebel groups trying to oust him.

Who's They?

The U.S., France, and the U.K. The Arab League said that Assad definitely used the weapons on his own people and that the U.N. Security Council should act—an indication of support from Arab states in favor of a possible intervention.

Who's Not They?

Russia and China. Russia—one of Assad’s BFFs—said the rebel forces may have been involved in the attack. Meanwhile, China’s news agency reminded everyone about that time the U.S. invaded Iraq over bad intelligence. Awkward. U.S. and friends are looking into ways to conduct a strike without U.N. approval, so as to avoid potential vetoes from Russia and China.

When is This Going Down?

The opposition groups trying to get rid of Assad have been given the heads up that a strike could come within days. Nothing like giving Assad some time to clear his schedule.

theSkimm

This is serious. Pay attention.

The *

Yesterday, sites like
The New York Times
and Twitter were allegedly
hacked
by a Syrian group that supports Assad. That same group has also claimed responsibility for hacking the
Washington Post
’s site earlier this month.

Topics

We are two women in their 20s who hail from New York and Chicago. Our startup romance is one for the books — we met on a rainy day in Rome while we were both studying abroad in college. We bonded over a mutual love of fried artichokes. What we didn’t know as we struggled to order in Italian, was that we’d reconnect years later working in our own country’s capital. By that point, we had become professional storytellers, as producers for NBC News- working in breaking news, political news, and documentaries. We clicked as colleagues and as friends and it didn’t take long for theSkimm to take form. We see ourselves as a part of a generation where women are out-earning men in paychecks and degrees. We’ve grabbed our seats at the table, now it’s time to Skimm to the head.